Pune: Maharashtra State Primary Teachers’ Association on Thursday wrote to the school education minister opposing a letter from the Amravati division on Wednesday which stated that the commissioner of education has ordered the ‘immediate closure of schools’ with fewer than five students in the state. The division on Thursday revised the letter, removing the closure part, and said that students from such schools will be merged with nearby schools, only if the local geographical conditions are conducive for a merger.As per the initial letter, the order was issued on Oct 7 by the commissioner during a virtual meeting of education department officials. Later, the revised letter proposed that the UDISE number of schools with zero students will be closed, and for students in merged schools, a provision of a transportation allowance of Rs 600 per month will be given if necessary. Teachers, however, were not satisfied and said that the merger is just another word for closure that the govt is using because, by law, they cannot close down schools even if a single student is studying there.Vijay Kombe, president of the association, said that most schools with five or fewer students are mainly in remote villages, tribal belts, or buffer forests. “There will be about 750 such schools in the state. Closing them or merging them will mean forcing students to trek mountains, cross rivers, or forests to reach the nearest schools. This would effectively hinder their education, especially for girls who would not be sent to faraway schools by their families. Village schools are the cornerstone of education in rural Maharashtra. It will adversely affect the students,” he added.Education commissioner Sachindra Pratap Singh clarified that there is no official govt decision, circular, or regulation mandating the closure of schools with fewer than five students. “A letter by the deputy director of Amravati division, indicating the closure of schools, came to my attention, and they have been told to withdraw it as the contents were not correct. The policy is not to close schools with fewer students by default, but to encourage merging them with nearby larger schools or cluster schools where possible in order to improve the quality of education and peer learning. Even decisions related to a merger should only be made if the schools are nearby, there is proper connectivity, and it is feasible for the students to attend a bigger school. The priority remains ensuring every child has access to primary education in their locality,” said Singh.A teacher, on the condition of anonymity, said that many villages don’t have proper roads, rendering the transport allowance useless. “Govt has become the biggest enemy of govt schools. Even if the distance is just 1km, there are dangers of animal attacks along the way, villages getting cut off during rains, hamlets in mountains and valleys, etc. Why can’t govt just let the schools be? It is because of such schools that people living in remote areas in the state can at least read and write. Without them, even basic literacy will become a challenge.”Another teacher said that the first to be affected if students have to travel farther will be girls. “No family will let the girl child go beyond a certain distance, and once she drops out, there are high chances of her becoming a child labourer and then a victim of child marriage. By closing down schools, we are also closing down the only govt system that is easily accessible to these villagers and the only place in most remote villages where a flag is hoisted on Independence and Republic Day,” another teacher said. Marathi, state song now must in all schools: MinMaharashtra govt has directed that Marathi language study and the singing of the state song be made mandatory in all schools across Maharashtra, including those affiliated with CBSE, ICSE, Cambridge, and international boardsSchool education minister Dada Bhuse made the announcement during a joint meeting of school principals, board coordinators, and education officials held on ThursdayBhuse said that students from national and international boards should also have Marathi reflected in their Class 10 marksheets, and govt will initiate correspondence with these boards to implement the change He added that lessons on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s life and legacy should be included in ICSE textbooks to align them with the state board curriculumThe minister also suggested that international board schools consider teaching aspects of Maharashtra’s history under humanities subjectsHe emphasised inclusive education for children with disabilities and learning difficulties, the installation of CCTV cameras in all schools, and strict implementation of RTE admissions across boardsBhuse said private and international schools with better facilities should also support Marathi-medium schoolsMahiyar Patel
